With pride he pulled on the stripes for a total of 28 years! He started his career officiating in the Guelph Minor Hockey Association before jumping into the OHA where he worked the Allan Cup and Memorial Cup tournaments.
From there it was on to the NHL for 18 seasons and the WHA for seven more. Between those two leagues he officiated in over 2,000 regular season games and 150 playoff match-ups. This included two WHA all-star games and three NHL all-star contests.
While he was a referee in the WHA, he spent his colourful career in the NHL as a linesman. On the ice (with the nickname of ‘Bear’ because of his burly build) he was as tough as nails and few players would continue scrapping when Asselstine said it was over. However off the ice his nickname could have been ‘teddy bear’ because of his love for children. In 1994 he was named winner of the prestigious Gold Whistle Award for his work with the Guelph Wish Fund for Children.
The Gold Whistle Award is presented to a professional official committed to the development of humanity. Over the years this well-known local charity has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to help grant wishes for terminally ill children and their families.
Ron was truly a credit to his profession and continues to positively impact our community through his wonderful charity work.
Inducted into the Guelph Sports Hall of Fame – Builder category – on May 12, 2004
